Could babies get bird flu through breast milk? Maybe, a study hints

The H5N1 virus may latch onto sugars in human breast tissue

A young baby breast feeding.

Nursing parents infected with bird flu might pass the virus to their babies, a new study hints. That's because human mammary glands contain sugars that H5N1 and other avian influenzas can use to infect cells.

SanyaSM/Getty Images

Human breast tissue may be capable of hosting — and passing on — bird flu.